Actors and Performers

Advice for disabled actors from Zak Ford-Williams, Actors’ & Performers’ Yearbook 2024

In this exclusive article, actor Zak Ford-Williams offers advice to disabled actors on navigating the industry.

Introducing… The Need for Words

The Need for Words jacket cover

Find your voice with Patsy Rodenburg’s seminal work on words – featuring a brilliant foreword by the late Antony Sher – which offers practical ways to approach language, Shakespeare, Romantic poetry, modern prose, and much more.

Listen to our podcast episode on Black British Queer Plays and Practitioners

Journey through the development of Black queer theatre in Britain, from monologue to musicals, realist drama to club-performance, and a wide range of forms.

Introducing… From Craft to Career

A guidebook on what it takes to become an industry pro, full of in-depth insight into the casting process within television, film and theatre.

Introducing… Speechwork for Actors

Introduction to Speechwork for Actors

An ideal speech-training resource for the 21st-century actor which includes specially commissioned online videos demonstrating key exercises.

Introducing… The Woman’s Voice

A call to arms to women about reclaiming their voices, combining elements of experience and practice from Patsy Rodenburg’s prolific career.

Introducing… Hear Me Now, Volume Two

Hear Me Now, Volume Two

An essential tool for actors of colour to showcase their range, and seeks to inspire, empower, and create a legacy for generations to come.

Top picks from Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2022

Many Methuen Drama authors will be premiering new work and reviving recent classics throughout this Fringe. Here is a run-down to help ensure you don’t miss your next festival-favourite!

Introducing… Performing for Motion Capture

Performing for Motion Capture

The first all-encompassing guide for the next generation of performers working specifically for motion capture, featuring contributions from practitioners working across the globe.

The key principles of hip hop

Making Hip Hop Theatre

An essential guide to the new, explosive synthesis of hip hop and theatre which covers vocal technique, use of equipment, mixing, looping, sampling, working with venues and dealing with creative challenges.

How to master your Shakespeare audition

Celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday this year with an excerpt from Mastering the Shakespeare Audition, which shows performers how to make the most of their rehearsal time in the lead up to an audition.

Introducing… The Vocal Arts Workbook

The Vocal Arts Workbook

For over 10 years, performers and practitioners have used The Vocal Arts Workbook to develop vocal power, range, and flexibility through through structured and informed methods.

Nancy Bishop on auditioning for film and TV post #MeToo

Auditioning for Film and Television

Legendary casting director Nancy Bishop offers actionable advice on audition technique, scene analysis, and online casting, as well as aiding actors in landing the part.

Annie Morrison on The Moment of Speech

Legendary voice instructor and creator of the Morrison Bone Prop, Annie Morrison, has put her modernising practice to paper, sharing her transformative process in The Moment of Speech: Creative Articulation for Actors.

An interview with Cherrelle Skeete, from the Actors’ & Performers’ Yearbook 2022

Actors & Performers Yearbook 2022

In this exclusive interview, actress Joan Iyiola talks to Cherrelle Skeete, co-founder and Artistic Director of Blacktress UK, a network that supports Black womxn creatives by providing them with a community.

Introducing… 30 Monologues and Duologues for South Asian Actors

30 Monologues and Duologues for South Asian Actors

The Kali Theatre celebrates 30 years of producing art with 30 monologues and duologues written by South Asian women.

An extract from Clown: The Physical Comedian – introducing The Look

Read this Extract from Clown: The Physical Comedian, Introduction, The Word and The Look

Extract from Voice into Acting, Chapter One: The Organic Acting Approach and the Voice

Voice into Acting

Read this Extract from Voice Into Acting, Chapter One: The Organic Acting Approach and the Voice

Extract from Actors’ and Performers’ Yearbook 2021

Actors' & Performers' Yearbook 2022

Read this interview from the Actors’ and Performers’ Yearbook 2021 with David Mumeni on levelling the playing field for actors from working- and benefit- class backgrounds.

‘If in Doubt’ Rules For Letter and Email Writing

As with most things in the acting world there is no ‘right way’ when it comes to putting a letter or email together. The following advice comes from interviews I’ve carried out with various actors, casting directors, agents and other industry experts; basic rules you can fall back on when in doubt, that will leave you something professional and effective.

Beyond #metoo

In October 2017, the The New York Times published an article accusing Hollywood film mogul Harvey Weinstein of decades of sexual harassment and assault. The entertainment industry’s apparent astonishment caused actress Alyssa Milano to tweet, “If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem.” 

Agents and what they do​

Actors without agents tend to lack credibility in the eyes of potential employers. It’s not fair, but it’s a fact. However hard you work at getting to know potential employers, most agents have their fingers closer to the pulse, know what’s coming up, and simply have far more contacts than you can ever have. That’s their job.